News from the Library of Congress

March 3, 1993

The American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress, drummer
Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead, and the record company Rykodisc
will announce the joint formation of "The Endangered Music Project"
at a press conference on Monday, March 15, at 11 a.m. in the
Mumford Room, Sixth Floor, James Madison Memorial Building, 101
Independence Ave., SE. An afternoon symposium titled "Music and
Cultural Conservation" and an evening reception (by invitation
only) will mark the announcement.

Musicians of the Aluku people from the rainforests of French Guiana
will attend the events.

The press conference will coincide with the release by Rykodisc of
a compact disc produced by Mickey Hart and the American Folklife
Center from archival recordings at the Library of Congress titled
"The Spirit Cries: Music from the Rainforests of South America &
the Caribbean." The disc is the first in the series dedicated to
endangered music.

The Endangered Music Project is being launched to highlight
traditional music as an endangered cultural resource throughout the
world. Proceeds from the project will be used to support the
performers and their cultures, as well as the release of additional
recordings in the series.